Cleaning device.



mmmmm L. J. WILBER.

CLEANING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 26.1916.

Patented Dec. 12, 1916..

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LYMAN J. WILIBER, 0F BROCKTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

CLEANING DEVICE.

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Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. T2, 191W.

Application filed July 26, 1916. Serial No. 111,532.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LYMAN J. WILBER, a citizen of the United States, residing at lBrockton, in the county of Plymouth and State of Massachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements in Cleaning Devices, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to that class of articles in which are included bath mittens,

face cloths, flesh brushes or complexion brushes, and the like.

The object of the invention is to provide an article that shall be a substitute for 'or supplement to articles such as those enumerated, usable in like manner for cleansing or massaging the skin, more effective, less expensive, easily cleaned and thoroughly sanitary, and not susceptible to injury by immersion in hot or boiling water.

The advantages of the use of vulcanized rubber for bath mittens and like articles have long been known, but such articles of vulcanized rubber have hitherto been provided with an artificially roughened surface in order to obtain the desired frictional effect on the skin, ordinary sheets of vulcanized rubber being too smooth for effective use either with or without soap. Surface projections artificially formed to afford to a certain extent the roughness sought, are objectionable in that they are subject to breakage, and after a short period of use the article becomes unsightly and its use is impaired. When the projections are integral with the body of the article and are formed by molds, they are necessarily relatively remote from each other by reason of the space occupied by the molding material, and the projections must be quite large in diameter in order to obtain a reasonable degree of compactness. The surfaces of such projections are smooth, and their frictional effect on the skin is not so pronounced as if the projection-surfaces were irregular or granular, and in use the projections curve over so that their sides, rather than their ends, engage the skin, still further essening the frictional edect My invention contemplates the use of a material having a naturally granular surface and adapted to afiord the maximum of friction desirable in toilet or cosmetic articles such as herein mentioned, yet sufiiciently soft to avoid injury to the skin, and T have discovered that strips of caoutchouc known as pale crape or lace crape in which form rubber is quite commonly offered for sale by planters, are exceedingly well adapted to be used in making articles for the uses specified.

While I do not limit myself to any specific form of article, for purposes of illustration and description I have shown two preferred embodiments in the accompanying drawings, of which Figure 1 illustrates conventionally a tubular mitten formed from a piece of such crape, slipped over a hand of a user and in position for use. Fig. 2 is a transverse section through the tubular mitten. Fig. 3 represents an embodiment of the invention adapted for use as a substitute for a flesh brush.

Pale crape, so called, is a practically pure caoutchouc or rubber obtained from the sap of young rubber trees; and preferably that obtained on the second or third tapping is used for the purposes of my invention. The rubber is separated from the for its characteristic granular structure and appearance, the granular formation appearing on severed or raw edges and persisting on both sides of the sheet, regardless of the peripheral formation of the rolls by which the sheets are formed. Another characteristic feature is the clinginess or' adhesiveness of the strip material, though the material is not of a cementitious nature under ordinary conditions, and it may be immersed in boiling water without becoming tacky. For the purpose of joining two portions of .the material, as when forming a mitten 10 with parts lapping at 11, as shown in the drawin s, l[ may use a solvent such as carbon-tetrac lorid or a high-grade naphtha, applying the same to,the lapping portions and pressing them together.

As stated, both surfaces of the crape are naturally granular, 0r rough in appearance, and a mitten formed as shown in the drawing can be turned inside out so as to be usable on both sides. As far as I am aware, it.is new to provide a rubber bath mitten or complexion brush usable on either side. The surfaces of my improved mitten are clingy to such a degree as to require a noticeable pull in order to get them apart after they have been pressed together, and when applied to the skin there is a similar suction effect, though to a lemer degree. This results in opening the pores of the skin and cleansing the latter thoroughly. Inventors have hitherto tried to obtain this suction effect by forming frusto-conical projections on the working face of a rubber article, shaped so that their tips present cuplike formations whereby suction is obtained to a'limited extent,'but such formation is troublesome and expensive and such devices have not come into general use. Then, too, as in the case of other molded projections on similar articles, the projections are necessarily so remote from each other as to make only a relatively small part of the surface of the article effective.

Since the material of which articles formed in accordance with my invention are made is not vulcanized, it is free from substances that are sometimes used for vulcanizing purposes and that would impart to it a scratchiness or harshness extremely undesirable. In spite of its softness, however, the

material is very effective as a cleanser, and in many cases the use of it would dispense with the use of pumice or grit to remove stains from the fingers. The material itself may be easily cleaned by any of the acid or alkaline solutions popularly used for cleansing purposes.

A strip 12 of thedescribed crape rubber may be cemented, stitched, or otherwise secured to a backing or holder 13, which may be an elongated strip of cloth having handles 14 at its ends, the whole constituting an appliance adapted to be used as a substitute for a flesh brush, the holder 13 enabling the strip 12 to be applied to relatively inaccessible parts of the human body.

The device may be used for cleaning various surfaces or articles. It is useful as an adjunct for washing textile fabrics, and

may be so used in the form of a mitten applied to the washers hand, as a covering for a wash-board, and otherwise.

Having thus explained the nature of my said invention and described a way of constructing and using the same, although without attempting to set forth all the forms in which it may be made or all the modes of its use,'what I claim is:

1. A cleaning device having portions arranged to encircle a part of a hand of the user and having a friction face of unvulcanized crape rubber.

2. A cleaning device comprising a strip of unvulcanized crape rubber having attached thereto means for engagement by the hand of a user.

3. A cleaning device comprising a strip of unvulcanized crape rubber having attached thereto oppositely disposed means for engagement by the hands of a user.

4. A cleaning device an end of which is formed to receive one or more digits of a hand, said device being provided between its ends with a friction face of unvulcanized crape rubber.

5. A cleaning device comprising a strip of fibrous material provided between its ends with a friction face of unvulcanized pale crape rubber.

'6. A cleaning device the ends of which are formed to receive one or more digits of a hand, said device having a friction face of unvulcanized craperubber.

7. A cleaning device comprising a. strip of unvulcanized crape rubber and a mounting therefor.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature.

LYMAN J. WILBER. 

